No Other Way
by RandyPandy
Summary: A couple is forced to make the hardest decision of their lives... As the Mario brothers grow up in Brooklyn, New York, what adventures await them in the Mushroom Kingdom?
1. Chapter 1

No Other Way

by RandyPandy

This is the first story that I've tried writing for the Mario universe. I am quite aware that there are plotholes in this fic. Blame Partners in Time. I will attempt to keep this as canon as possible while still adding my own ideas. At first, it will be about the Mario Bros. lives before they head to the Mushroom Kingdom. It will then head into the Mushroom Kingdom world later. I was very tempted to do Yoshi's Island and Partners in Time before this part, but I decided not to.

Disclaimer: I don't own Mario, Luigi, and any other character names you probably recognize. I do, however, own the man and the woman in the beginning fic (the man is identified by name later) and the Mario couple.

* * *

"Is there no other way?" 

The speaker was a woman, dressed in a black cloak. She wasn't very tall, and her voice was light. Standing next to her was a taller man. He too was wearing a black cloak, although the tell-tale signs of a blue hat with a 'T' on it was on his head. Both of them were holding a blanket-wrapped bundle in their arms each.

The man sighed. "We have no choice. You heard why the stork was late in delivering them. Koopas were interested in them; even Dark Wizard Kamek went out of his way to kidnap them. If the Yoshis hadn't helped them, they would have never made it here. And they were quite formidable during the Shroob invasion. When they disappeared, we were worried that something had happened to them. But Toadsworth gave them back to us, perfectly unharmed. How could two babies survive an alien invasion unchanged when everyone else was being Shroobified right and left?"

"Still... do we really have to take such drastic measures?" the woman sniffled. She clutched the bundle in her arms even tighter, but not too tightly.

"I'm afraid we have no choice," the man told her gently. "Come. We must do this before the Koopas attack again. I have already explained to the king why they will not be able to play with the princess anymore. He was unhappy, but knew that it was necessary."

"Where are we going?" the woman asked.

"I'll show you. There is a warp pipe hidden between the Mushroom Kingdom and the Beanbean Kingdom. People rarely head over there, and few know about the warp pipe's existence."

"But thousands must cross the border everyday!"

"I know. But I have a feeling that the warp pipe will only appear for those that know of its existence and are looking for it. It must lead somewhere very secure – possibly secure enough for our children. They can go grow up there, safe and sound."

"But will they ever come back?"

"We must take that risk," he told her gently. "You would rather our children grow up safe and sound rather then be constantly attacked by forces of darkness, correct?"

"Y-yes..." she whispered.

The man glanced at the sky, and then at the bundle in his arms. The baby inside the blankets was asleep, but one could see a bright red hat with an 'M' stitched on it. The baby inside the bundle on his wife's arms also had a hat, except it was bright green with an 'L' stitched on it.

"We must go."

* * *

Looming in front of them was a bright green warp pipe. At first, they had not even noticed it, but after looking around for it, the warp pipe was suddenly in plain view. The man's theory about the warp pipe had been correct. 

"So, this is it... we go inside the pipe, leave them, and come back," the man said. He stepped into the pipe. The woman hesitated for a moment, and then followed.

They made nothing of the experience through the warp pipe; the citizens of the Mushroom Kingdom dealt with them on a daily basis. It was when they climbed out of the warp pipe that they were shocked.

They were standing inside an alleyway. Tall buildings, some even taller than the king's castle, littered the place. The alleyway they were standing in had nothing in it, save the warp pipe. It was late at night, so when they left the alleyway, no one was on the streets.

"W-wow..." the woman breathed. She glanced around at her surroundings, wide-eyed. "What is this land called? I don't ever recall hearing anyone talk about this style of buildings..."

"I do not know," the man replied.

"Where shall we leave the children?" the woman asked him.

The man pointed at a building in the distance. "There." The building was labeled 'Brooklyn's Children's Home for Boys and Girls.' "If I am correct, whoever lives there takes care of children. Surely they will take care of our sons!"

The couple walked over to the steps of the orphanage and gently placed their bundles down. They stood there, staring at the babies for a moment. The woman began to sob lightly. Alarmed, the man turned to her.

"Shh... it's okay..."

"I-I can't help it..." she sniffled. "W-we might n-never see them a-a-again..." She kneeled down and gently kissed the foreheads of the sleeping babies. "Goodbye..." Still sobbing, she and the man walked away, back to the warp pipe which whisked them away to another world...

On the doorstep of the orphanage, a pair one-year-old boys slept through the night. In the morning, they were found and taken into the orphanage that would be their home for a few years.

* * *

The boys appeared Italian in origin, so, going by the letters on their hats, the orphanage people named them Mario and Luigi. The two brothers were unusually close, having no one else to really turn to. They felt as if something isolated them from the other children, as if they were not like them. 

The odd thing was, they came up with the strangest things. When Mario was four, he drew the image of a two-legged dinosaur with a large mouth, shoes, and a saddle, colored it green, and said that it was a 'Yoshi' and that it was a real animal. He was laughed at by everyone except Luigi, who had been drawing the exact same thing.

Sometime after this, while Luigi was out, he was struck by lightning. Amazingly, he was only knocked unconscious and suffered a few light burns, which were minor compared to what most victims suffered. The Brooklyn doctors were unable to explain why Luigi was perfectly healthy, and dismissed it as a 'miracle' and an isolated incident.

Not long afterwards, there was a fire in the orphanage. Mario, as well as a few other children, was trapped in the burning section. Two children died, and many others had severe burns, but Mario only had some blistered skin which quickly healed. Doctors were unable to explain this as well, and people grew more and more curious about the odd pair of twin boys with the almost identical hats.

The first turning point in their lives was when they were five-years-old. An Italian couple had come looking for children since the wife was unable to get pregnant, and the one time she had, she had delivered a still-born child. The couple had given up trying to bear their own children, and had instead turned to adoption.

They would like a pair of boys, brothers, preferably, as they told the orphanage. After a long, drawn-out process, they adopted Mario and Luigi. Curiously, their last name was also Mario, much to Luigi's amusement.

They moved in with the Mario family, who loved the two boys as if they were their own sons. The two brothers spent several more happy years there before finally going their own way. However, that's for later...

* * *

No, this is not the end! I felt this an appropriate place to leave off. It could be a one-shot or a multi-chapter story. Hopefully, it will be multi-chapter. 


	2. Chapter 2

Well, I finally decided to continue it. They're still in Brooklyn, but I'll be taking them to the Mushroom Kingdom eventually (maybe in another chapter or two).

* * *

Ten-year-old Luigi knew that he was late in coming home from school. He had had a special P.E. training program that had been given to him after they discovered his quick speed and high jumps. Mario, who had never liked athletics, had gone home without him. The younger twin was too tired to run home, so he simply walked.

Traveling through the streets, he saw an odd green pipe inside an alleyway that he had strangely never noticed before. Like most boys his age, Luigi was curious, and he dreamed of adventure. Therefore, it was only natural that he would want to climb through the pipe.

Luigi Mario crawled through the pipe. It was hot, and every once in awhile he would take off his hat and fan himself with it. It seemed like ages, but finally he saw a light ahead of him. He pulled himself forward, and his jaw dropped in surprise.

The place seemed old and dreary, with bits of normal water pipes lining the ceiling. Drops silently dripped from the pipes. The boy glanced around, amazed. He turned himself around and around, simply staring at everything. Then, when he turned around to go back into the pipe, he nearly screamed.

A round white something was blocking the exit to the pipe. Luigi spun around quickly, trying to calm his racing heart. He turned back around, only to find the white thing quickly heading towards him. He finally screamed, and bolted through the other exit – a door. He ran through the place, trying to escape the strange white thing following him. However, many more white things were around, and they saw him and began to chase him.

Luigi backed himself into a corner and looked like he was about to wet himself. He whimpered and closed his eyes. He was afraid of these creepy white things. He was afraid!

"Fire!" a voice shouted. Luigi heard some squealing, and kept his eyes shut for some more time before finally opening them. A man was standing in front of him, fire coming from his hand. The strange white things squealed before fading away. The man sighed, the fire leaving his hand, and turned around to Luigi. He held out a familiar green object – Luigi's hat. When had that fallen off?

"I believe this is yours," the man said. Luigi took the hat, put it on, and studied the man with curiosity. The man had dark brown and blue eyes – much like Luigi's own. There was also a blue hat with a 'T' on his head. Luigi thought he was hallucinating. The hat looked a lot like his.

"W-what were those...?" Luigi whimpered slightly. He never wanted to see one of those odd white round things ever again.

"Boos," the man said in a matter-of-fact tone. "They're a type of ghost."

"G-ghosts?!" Luigi nearly squeaked.

The man nodded. "Quite dangerous if you don't know how to deal with them. Good thing they don't like fire. But that aside. Where did you come from? There is supposed to be nobody here. You're lucky I decided to search this place today."

"I came through a big green pipe..."

"A big green pipe," the man repeated softly. Luigi nodded, slightly face burning. He thought that the man must think him stupid. "Well, there is only one such pipe here. It should take you back to where you came from. Do you remember where it is?" Luigi shook his head. "Fine then. I will take you there. But be careful. Should you ever find it again, I hope you are prepared..."

Luigi and the man traveled through the building towards the same pipe that Luigi had crawled through. The man stood in front of the pipe as Luigi climbed into it. "I trust that you can find your way back on your own?" Luigi nodded. "Alright. Go now, son. Oh, and you have a twin brother, right?" Luigi, confused, nodded again. "Tell him that a friend said 'hi' when you get back, will you?"

Luigi blinked. "Okay... Mister, what is your name?"

It was now the man's turn to blink. "You can call me Torrone." That was the last thing Luigi heard from him before he crawled through the pipe and finally emerged in the familiar streets of Brooklyn.

The man, Torrone, smiled as he watched the now empty pipe. "So, you did come back... when will I see you again, my son?"

* * *

Luigi was scolded by his parents when he finally made it home. They weren't really angry, but they had been very scared. Mario too had been scared. Luigi thought to tell Mario about the strange man and the ghosts he had seen, but for some reason he didn't want to be in earshot of their parents.

That encounter with the green pipe had done more than give Luigi an adventure. He had seen a man that resembled him and Mario. Not only that, he was now terrified of ghosts, and refused to go out on Halloween. The Boos had frightened him that badly. His adoptive parents didn't understand this unusual and sudden fear, but they learned to live with it.

Eventually, two years later, Luigi did tell his brother about his adventure. Mario was skeptical at first, but then realized that even if Luigi was making it up, the younger twin was convinced that it had really happened.

"I don't get why you were so freaked about a ghost," Mario said. "You weren't before."

"I tell you, that thing was trying to kill me!" Luigi argued.

"What about the guy you saw? What was his name, Torrone?" Mario asked, dropping the subject about Luigi being terrified of ghosts.

"Yeah... it was... weird. He seemed to know about me. He asked whether I had a twin brother. About you. He wanted me to say 'hi' to you. Do you know him?"

"...Luigi, I've never met anyone named Torrone..."

"There was something else. He also looked like us, and had a hat like ours. Except the hat was blue and there was a 'T' on it."

"...This doesn't make any sense! One, we have abilities that no other kid has; fast speed and jumping height, even if you are better at both of them. Two, we have good endurance. Three, you encounter real ghosts, even though it's a fact that they don't exist. Four, you meet a guy that could pass for our real father..." Mario broke off, realizing what he had just said. "Our real father... Luigi... do you think...?"

"I don't know what to think," Luigi said, shaking his head.

* * *

And that explain's Luigi's fear of ghosts. He really needs to call ghostbusters. And don't worry about Torrone. He's not really a major character; he might just pop in here and there. So, how was it?  



	3. Chapter 3

A special thanks to my reviewers LuigiGirl-22. Tailsie, and Zero9g9. You guys have given me the incentive to continue writing this. Thank you!

* * *

When the boys were nineteen years old, they got a job with the local construction company, since their parents were unable to afford college tuition and neither of them got full scholarships, or even partial scholarships. Unfortunately for Luigi, he never got a scholarship for all of the athletics he had been doing, and they both worked at the construction company for a few years.

Mario was currently dating a girl named Pauline, whom he had known in high school. Occasionally, she would visit him at the construction company. However, one day, while she was visiting, an ape named Donkey Kong escaped from the zoo and captured Pauline. Mario rescued her, but she was forever frightened from the incident. The two later eventually broke up, and left on good terms.

Neither brother spoke of Luigi's visit to the other world to anyone else, worried at the thought of being deemed insane, as many Earthlings believed that alternate worlds did not exist. But it did clear some things up for them. Both of them had odd powers, powers that were not from this world, like their endurance and speed. They had always felt as if they hadn't belonged, like they were... different.

They left the construction company, as it had very bad memories for Mario. They were jobless for awhile and then started their own plumber business, Mario Bros. Plumbing, and managed to live off of the money they made from it. They were decent at fixing pipes and leaks, and they soon became very good at it. More and more people were starting to use their services.

However, their lives were turned upside down by one phone call. There was nothing suspicious about the phone call, as it had rung on an ordinary working day. The client, on the other hand, was a bit strange.

"Hello?" said Mario, holding the phone to his ear.

"Is this Mario Bros. Plumbing?" an odd, creaky, but definitely male voice said. "I am in need of your services. I live 31 Wiz Street, and the underground pipes underneath my home have sprung leaks and are infested with some odd creatures that appear to be the cause of the leaks. Some friends recommended your excellent service, and I can hope that your services are satisfactory enough for me."

"Don't worry, sir, we'll take care of it for you," Mario replied.

The voice was silent for awhile, before saying, "Thank you." And it hung up.

Mario turned towards his brother. "Well Luigi, let's head for our next job!"

* * *

Even though the caller had talked about odd creatures affecting the pipes, they were startled with the strange, turtle-like and fly-like creatures coming out of the pipes. They were almost half the size of the brothers. Both brothers were able to jump on them and knock them out for a good while, before kicking them away. In fact, they got so efficient at it that they began having a contest to see who could defeat the most.

Mario kicked a few of the Spinys away, making sure that he was not hitting their spiked top. Most of them were slow, but every once in awhile, an extremely fast one would appear, which would take more effort to subdue. He felt slightly spooked out, especially since he could swear he saw a few fireballs heading towards him and Luigi. He shook his head and continued attacking the strange creatures.

"Waaah!" Luigi screamed, dashing over and hiding behind Mario. He pointed a very shaky finger at something white floating his way. "G-ghosts!" he screamed, pulling his hat over his face. Indeed, there were ghosts; they were appearing out of nowhere, and they looked like the Boos that Luigi had described to him in their childhood. He stared at the Boos for a few seconds before turning around. He nearly jumped.

_ Mamma mia! And that's not all_, Mario groaned, staring at the massive army of Spinys, Fireflies, and Boos heading their way. He calculated his chances; Luigi was paralyzed with fear, and even if he hadn't been, there were too many to take on. And these critters looked nasty. _There's no other way; we've got to run!_

"Luigi, into the pipes!" he shouted, grabbing his brother and pulling him along into a green pipe right behind them. He ran through the maze of pipes, Luigi finally recovering enough to run. They emerged in another section of the underground pipe maze. At the opposite end, another army of Spinys, Fireflies, and Boos were arriving.

Both of them looked around frantically before seeing another pipe. This pipe was different from all the others. While it looked normal in outwards appearances, it was the only pipe in the entire room (and possibly place) that pointed _down_. They stared at it for awhile, and then at the enemies, and slowly backed up.

Luigi headed backwards even after he had bumped up against the pipe, too anxious to get away from the Boos. In doing so, he tripped and fell right into the pipe. With a yell, he disappeared into the darkness. As he fell, Mario heard his voice grow softer and softer until it could no longer be heard. The plumber knew that there was only one option.

"LUIGI!" Mario screamed. Forgetting everything else, he plunged right into the pipe after his twin brother. After traveling down the dark black pipe for who knows how long, he fell out of the other end, which appeared to be floating in the sky. He fell through the sky onto some soft sand. Groaning, he looked up, and froze as he heard another groan. Luigi was getting up and shaking the sand out of his ears.

"Luigi! You're okay!" gasped running over to his brother as the one in green picked himself up. Oddly enough, neither of them had any broken bones or even bruises. "Come on, let's get out of here and go back to where we were." The two brothers got up, and as they began to walk, they suddenly found themselves facing the business end of a spear. As they turned around, more spears began to appear in all directions. They looked up the ends of the spears until they saw some very short people with odd hats that looked like mushrooms.

"Freeze!" one of the short people said. He appeared to carry himself with higher authority than the others, and the brothers could only assume that this was the leader. He had a white hair, and carried a stick in his other hand. Despite the fact that Mario and Luigi both thought that he looked very familiar, they couldn't quite remember him. Either way, they were too busy focusing on the spears aimed at them.

_Mamma mia. _

* * *

So, um... I'll stop there for now. But I will do some more chapters._  
_


End file.
